Sailors aboard the
aircraft carrier USS
Enterprise (CVN 65) will
say goodbye to executive
officer Capt. Ryan B.
Scholl April 11, after
his almost two years of
dedicated service on board
the world’s first and oldest
nuclear powered aircraft
carrier.
As “Big XO,” Scholl was
instrumental in bringing
the Enterprise team
successfully from shipyard
to combat deployment.
Scholl joined as
executive officer while
the ship was undergoing
the challenging Extended
Dry-docking Selected
Restricted Availability
(EDSRA). Through his
vigilant and dedicated
leadership, the ship moved

through a compressed
work-up period and onto
its 2011 deployment,
conducting theater security

cooperation port visits
and supporting Operation
Enduring Freedom.
Those who know him
best will remember his
good humor, constant
professionalism and his
work ethic. You could set
your watch to his schedule,
whether it was his daily
gym appearances early in
the morning or his voice
over the 1MC. He created
a measure of stability
for the Sailors on board
throughout the last two
years as the command
experienced rapid
change.
From 3M assessments
and late-night man
overboard drills to
distinguished visitor
embarks and welcoming

the crew to cleaning
stations, this Beltsville,
Md. native distinguished
himself through visionary
and inspirational leadership
of more than 185 Officers
and 3,200 Sailors.
He now takes what he
learned aboard Big ‘E’
to the USS Gunston Hall
(LSD 44) where he will
serve as commanding
officer of Sailors and
embarked Marines. Many
think he will be a perfect
fit for the Gator Navy
Fittingly, his constant
refrain personified the
example he set with
the famous words that
will echo long after his
departure, ‘Now we’ve got
a lot of work to do. Let’s
get after it. XO out!”